


Petals of Styx

by aakielos



Category: Hades (Video Game 2018)
Genre: Drabble, Hanahaki Disease, M/M, Pining, Unresolved Emotional Tension, it's kinda sad i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2020-10-15
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:40:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27022135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aakielos/pseuds/aakielos
Summary: It's not as if Thanatos regrets, no matter how hard he tries.
Relationships: Thanatos/Zagreus (Hades Video Game)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 62





	Petals of Styx

**Author's Note:**

> idk wtf im on about and ive literally never written anything in my life except like. school work.  
> (not edited lmao)

Thanatos watches Zagreus rise from the Styx, feels his own chest constrict and his throat close. A slow breath forces the feeling down, pushes air through lungs that don’t need it. A few months spent away from the house, the ongoing war taking up far more time than usual, only to be greeted on his return by the news of Zagreus’ escapes.

On some level, Thanatos understands. Zagreus has always been sheltered inside, Hades unwilling to provide even the illusion of freedom, Nyx wishing to keep Zagreus and his red blood safe. He is not meant to be kept trapped, Thanatos knows. The Zagreus from his childhood was constantly in motion, endlessly training with Achilles, talking to anyone who would listen and sometimes those who wouldn’t. Zagreus’ charm, then and now, would ensure that they would start listening anyway. It’s most likely thanks to his tenacity that he and Thanatos became friends, a bond forming in the way only persistence could form.

However, understanding does not mean acceptance. 

Thanatos tries, truly, he does. But betrayal is an emotion not so easily overcome, even when shadowed by others. For Zagreus to leave without saying goodbye, not even leaving a note. As if Thanatos is simply an afterthought, easily forgotten. It stings far more than Thanatos wishes, sits far heavier on Thanatos’ heart than the flower that grows inside him.

Watching Zagreus walk up the stairs, shake his hair free from the liquid of the styx, Thanatos raises his palm to his mouth and coughs out leaves of burnished gold and blood. A match to the laurel Zagreus wears on his head. A long time and long distance had made Thanatos hope the flower would wilt, but returning to the house only confirms it has grown more, and become worse.

Death cannot be taken by himself, but he can be cursed for an eternity, tortured for longer. An ever growing flower that reminds him of what he feels, and cannot have. Thanatos scoffs lightly, coughs up more flower petals, so soft they’d feel luxurious if they did not scrape his heart, throat, his mouth on the way out. As if he needs the reminder, he thinks. He feels it twisting around his heart now, the stem only tightening around the beating of his heart.

Achilles stands only paces behind, watching him with silent concern. An observer to his misfortune, and the only other to know the curse. His mother, of course, was the first to know, of both his devotion and the curse. Perhaps she knew even before Thanatos himself, watching him and Zagreus grow up together, the way Thanatos would treat Zagreus with far more care than anything or anyone else.

Even with the constant pain and reminder, Thanatos cannot bring himself to regret this. Does not wish to seek out a method to remove the flower that traps his own heart inside. As Thanatos sweeps the petals into the river Styx that flows beneath him, Zagreus walks down the hall towards his father, receives a curt message, and moves forward to pet Cerberus. He turns into the west hall to great Achilles, and Thanatos leaves with a flash of green and a bell before Zagreus can see him.

Never mind that Zagreus rushes towards his place as soon as he sees the flash in his periphery, hears the toll he constantly listens out for. The chance to say goodbye eludes Thanatos once again, and Zagreus misses his chance to say hello, the start of a beloved name never leaving his mouth.

**Author's Note:**

> I Love Them. how do people write so many words my brain hurts


End file.
